Two Fastrax skydivers prepare to make a landing on the beach to start the show.
It was one of those moments that make you close your eyes and hope for the best.
Rick Volker’s high-performance plane zoomed skyward, seemingly froze in midair and then dove down toward the ocean at breakneck speed – as if careening out of control.
But this death-defying piece of flying didn’t end in disaster. Volker, one of the country’s most accomplished aerobatic pilots, pulled up with seconds to spare.
His maneuver brought gasps from the spectators on the beach watching the Ocean City Boardwalk Aerobatic Show – then cheers and applause.
The annual airshow Sunday afternoon included the aerial choreography of other top aerobatic pilots performing an array of gravity defying rolls, loops, twists and flips.
“It’s awesome. We’re having a great time,” said Steve Ruoff, who was enjoying the airshow with his wife, Mindy.
The couple had made a spur-of-the-moment decision to drive down to Ocean City from their home in Audubon, N.J., for a getaway at the shore. They plunked down their beach chairs by the water’s edge and watched the airshow unfold above them.
“This is the first one for us,” Mindy said of watching the airshow. “It’s great. So far, it’s a beautiful beach day.”
Mindy and Steve Ruoff, of Audubon, N.J., were first-time spectators at the airshow.Resembling the massive crowds Ocean City attracts during a busy weekend day in the summer tourism season, the beaches and Boardwalk were packed with thousands of airshow spectators Sunday.
The airshow is one of the centerpieces of Ocean City’s lineup of family-friendly fall events to continue attracting tourists to town after the summer tourism season is over.
“Large crowds come out for this event, and the perfect weather only helps,” said Dan Kelchner, director of Ocean City Community Services. “We try to put forth the best product we can. We have just a cool viewing area for it – between the beach, the Music Pier and all that Ocean City has to offer. It’s a great event.”
The airshow culminated a weekend of family-friendly events that drew big crowds, including a festival at the Ocean City Municipal Airport.
The Fastrax Team of professional skydivers performed a patriotic-themed group skydive at the airport on Saturday and followed up with a spectacular nighttime jump that lit up the sky above the Boardwalk with pyrotechnics.
“I would say right around 30,000 would be the number for the weekend across both days. It’s one of the best shoulder-season events and weekends,” Kelchner said of the number of visitors in town. “Between the night jump, the beachfront aerobatic show today as well as the airport festival, it really is three marquee events that bring out families and appeals to a broad spectrum of visitors.”
A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter simulates making a rescue in the ocean.The Fastrax skydivers opened the airshow with a patriotic-themed jump that included team member Brian Pangburn floating down to earth while attached to a giant American flag flying majestically in the wind.
As the national anthem played over the loudspeakers, thousands of spectators cheered and applauded when Pangburn landed on the 12th Street beach to kick off the airshow in grand style.
Pangburn was followed by Fastrax skydivers Yuliya Pangburn, Mike Derge, Justin Jetmer, Kevin Dubas and Matt Harvey. They all landed on the beach after treating the spectators to a patriotic aerial show of red, white and blue streamers and smoke, as well as a smaller American flag.
Brian Pangburn jumped out of the plane at an altitude of 7,000 feet, while the other skydivers jumped from 5,000 feet.
“It’s quite a sight,” Dubas said of seeing Ocean City from about a mile above ground. “When you’re down on the Boardwalk, you can’t see the entire island. But when you’re up that high, you can see the entire island. The beauty of the Boardwalk, the ocean and the whole city is an amazing sight.”
This year’s airshow include a mix of familiar names and first-time performers in Ocean City.
“In many ways, this year we’re sustaining the success that we’ve had with a lot of the same acts that have really been successful and drawn visitors here. We’ve also added a few new acts this year,” Kelchner said.
The Jersey Jerks precision-flying team stays in close formation.In addition to Rick Volker, other aerobatic pilots performing solo acts at the 90-minute show included Robert Schmidle and Kevin Russo. Schmidle was one of the new performers.
The Jersey Jerks team flew in close formation while executing a series of maneuvers in four vintage T-6 planes with roaring engines. The NextGen Eagles, another new act for the airshow, entertained the crowds with their two high-performance biplanes.
A U.S. Coast Guard helicopter staged a search-and-rescue demonstration while hovering low over the water. Later, the orange helicopter did a high-speed pass just off the beach to the delight of spectators.
Check out these photos from the Ocean City Airshow.
